BABSON HOLDS OFF MEN'S SOCCER FOR 4-3 WIN

BABSON PARK, MA - The Babson College men's soccer team built a 4-1 lead late in the first half and then held off visiting UMass Boston as the Beavers defeated the Beacons, 4-3, in a wild non-conference men's soccer contest at Babson's Hartwell-Rogers Field on a rainy Saturday afternoon. With the win, Babson evened its record at 2-2, while UMass Boston slipped to 1-2.

The Beavers grabbed an early 1-0 advantage when freshman Eric Anderson (Scituate, MA) tucked a cross from sophomore Billy Nickerson (Middleton, MA) into an open net just over five minutes into the contest. The lead would last just 15 minutes as a failed clear on a Beacons' corner kick set up sophomore Mike Zazzara's (Dedham, MA) goal from the top of the box at 20:08.

Babson appeared to put the game away with a dominating stretch over the next 22 minutes, scoring three unanswered goals to take a 4-1 lead. Anderson netted the first off a low corner kick by senior Dan Fogarty (Brookline, NH) at 24:54, and sophomore Edson Silva (Brockton, MA) scored the second when he took a cross from classmate Salomon Guindi (Mexico City, Mexico) and slid it inside the right post at 40:32. Guindi then tacked on a goal of his own just over a minute later, as he converted a penalty kick at 41:49.

UMass Boston refused to go quietly, getting one goal back when senior Kofi Boateng (Lowell, MA) gathered the ball off a defensive deflection and ripped a shot into the lower right corner at 43:15. The Beacons later made it a one-goal affair when sophomore Jaime Delgado's (Pembroke Pines, FL) cross from the right side was tipped to freshman Luis Saquich (Marlborough, MA), who chipped it into an open net to cut Babson's lead to 4-3 at 56:22. However, after six total goals in the first half, Saquich's score would prove to be the only goal of the second as Babson held on for the eventual 4-3 victory.

Senior goalie Domenick Persuitte (West Barnstable, MA) finished with four saves in net for UMass Boston, while sophomore Ian Siekman (Bethel, ME) stopped two shots in goal for the Beavers.

Babson returns to action tomorrow afternoon, as the Beavers host Claremont-Mudd-Scripps at noon. The Beacons are off until Wednesday, when they host Fitchburg State College at 3:30 p.m. at the Clark Athletic Center Field.